Big Game Hunting On Military Bases

Published: January - 1999

Fort Polk: This 144,343-acre Army base in central Louisiana near the town of Leesville offers hunts for whitetail deer and wild hogs in addition to small game and birds. Approximately 126,300 acres of the base are open to hunting, although during a training exercise, many acres are off-limits to hunters. Fort Polk is in long leaf pine country. The terrain consists of hardwood bottoms, forest areas and thickets. According to Game Enforcement Officer, Elton Herring, the average live body weight of the deer found at Fort Polk is about 150 pounds. There is a bag limit on deer of one per day and six per hunting season. Big game hunting gets underway here with either-sex archery season in mid-October, followed by gun season, with starts in late October and continues through February of the following year.

Anyone hunting on Fort Polk must have a Louisiana hunting license, which non-residents can purchase over the phone with a toll-free call. Five-day licenses cost $95.50; archery and muzzleloader hunters must also purchase a $25.50 weapons permit. Fort Polk hunters must also have a Fort Polk season permit, which is free from the Fort Polk Game Enforcement Office. After a Fort Polk permit is obtained, hunters are authorized to use the self-clearing stations throughout the base. Incidentally, Herring says one of his favorite areas is Whiskey Chitto Creek, which is part of the Zion Hills area, because it is full of hardwood bottoms. He notes his staff is committed to providing as many hunting opportunities as possible to the public. For more information on the Fort Polk hunting program, including a map and brochure, contact the Game Enforcement Office. There is also a Hunting Information Hotline, as well as a hunting information site on the Internet.